206 CAPTAIN COOK'S VOYAGES 



here on her return ; and he found a letter here from Captain 

 Furneaux, acquainting him with the loss of his boat and of 

 ten of his best men in Queen Charlotte's Sound. He 

 afterwards, on his arrival in England, put into Captain 

 Cook's hands a complete narrative of his proceedings from 

 the time of their second and final separation, which we 

 now detail, to complete the history of this voyage. 



In October, 1773, they were blown off the coast of New 

 Zealand, when they parted company with the Resolution, 

 and never saw her afterwards. They combated violent 

 storms till the 6th of November, when, being to the north 

 of Cape Palliser, they bore away for some bay to complete 

 their water and wood, being in great want of both, having 

 been at the allowance of one quart of water for some days 

 past ; and even that pittance could not be come at above 

 six or seven days longer. They anchored in Tolaga Bay. 

 Wood and water are easily to be had. The natives here 

 are the same as those at Charlotte Sound, but more 

 numerous. In one of their canoes they observed the head 

 of a woman lying in state, adorned with feathers and 

 other ornaments. It had the appearance of being alive ; 

 but, on examination, they found it dry, being preserved 

 with every feature perfect, and kept as the relic of some 

 deceased relation. 



Having got about ten tuns of water and some wood, 

 they sailed for Charlotte Sound on the 12th ; but violent 

 weather prevented them from reaching it till the 30th. 

 They saw nothing of the Resolution, and began to doubt 

 her safety ; but on going ashore they discerned the place 

 where she had erected her tents ; and on an old stump 

 of a tree in the garden, observed these words cut out, 

 " Look underneath." There they dug, and soon found 

 a bottle, corked and waxed down, with a letter in it from 

 Captain Cook, signifying their arrival on the 3rd instant, 

 and departure on the 24th, and that they intended spend- 

 ing a few days in the entrance of the Straits to look for 

 them. 



They immediately set about the necessary repairs of 

 the ship, which employed them till the 16th of December. 



Next day they sent their large cutter, with Mr. Rowe, 

 a midshipman, and the boat's crew, to gather wild greens 

 for the ship's company, with orders to return that evening, 

 as they intended to sail the next morning. But, on the 

 boat's not returning the same evening, nor the next morn- 

 ing, the second lieutenant, Mr. Burney, in the launch, 

 manned with the boat's crew and ten marines, went in 

 search of her. Mr. Burney returned about eleven o'clock 

 the same night, and informed them of a horrible scene 



